Dear !*TITLE*! !*LASTNAME*!,
Going into March, I guess we finally could expect some warmer weather. It has been a very chilly winter also in Japan, the coldest in 26 years they say, so the coldest I have experience - have been here for only 23...
We had a very interesting and much appreciated presentation by Dr. Martin Schulz at our luncheon meeting on Tuesday. Read more below and note that his full presentation can be downloaded on the report page.
This week we have a new contribution from Japan veteran in Finnish business his column Aoyama View, this time titled "TOKYO DELIGHTS", which takes you on an interesting "walk" through all the new (and an old one) sights in Tokyo. At not only sights, also sounds.
Click banner at right for an interesting and educating read.

Report from the luncheon with Dr. Martin Schulz, Fujitsu Research Institute
At our luncheon meeting on Tuesday, 28 February we had Dr. Martin Schulz, Senior Economist, Fujitsu Research Institute as our guest speaker.
The theme of his presentation was "The World is turning Japanese: Opportunities for Japan in Asia and Europe".
The conlusions Dr. Schuls made in his very interesting speech were that Japan's manufacturers are part of the Asian growth story, which might get a hit in 2012, but continues to depend on Japan's machines and parts. Business in Japan, not least in services, remains profitable. He also pointed out that companies need "value" strategies for cross-border growth as much as "growth" strategies for emerging markets. He also briefly touched upon the situation in Europe.
For a full report from the event, attended by 32 members and guests, click links at right.

Tuesday, 6 April - Members OnlyFCCJ Annual General Assembly
The 13th Ordinary Annual General Assembly of FCCJ will be held at the

Embassy of Finland on

Tuesday, 3 April, 2012 at 17.00
The Assembly will handle matters according to Article 9 in the Articles of Association of the FCCJ.
Dinner at 18:00
After the Assembly (at 18:00), we will have a dinner hosted by Ambassador Jari Gustafsson.
This is a member only event and he dinner is free for one representative/member. If space available, additional representatives from member companies can be accepted, but will charged 7,000 yen per person.
If you would like to attend, please click link at right!

Wednesday, 7 March - Danish Chamber Event
Europe at a difficult junction - What will be the consequences for the world?
The Danish Chamber (DCCJ) invites members of other foreign chambers to an event with Mr. Jens Thomsen, member of the Board of Governors of Danish Nationalbank from 1995.
He will discuss current financial issues in Europe and how this might afffect business in Japan. His presentation is titled "Europe at a difficult junction; debt crisis, mounting indignation and financial fragility - What will be the consequences for the world?".

Wednesday, 7 March
The Katerva Conference on Innovation in Sustainability 2012
Katerva means "the wisdom of crowds" in ancient Greek, and Katerva's mission is to mobilize the world toward sustainability using the power of the "crowd" for positive change. Working collaboratively through a global network of experts and thought leaders leveraging virtual platforms, we can and will change the face of how business is carried out and redefine our future.

Hear from Katerva Award winning companies whose ideas have been recognized as the most Innovative on the Planet for 2011 - the Katerva Awards: Identify and accelerate the most promising sustainability ideas on the planet.

Learn from studies in global trends in Sustainability from leading organizations including the Harrison Group, FutureFoundation and Deloitte-Touche, (which will present it groundbreaking paper just debuted at Davos a few weeks ago).

News from Finland
Finns spent 10 billion euros online last year
Finns spent more than 10 billion euros on goods and services via the Internet in 2011. That's 10 percent more than online shoppers spent in 2010.
The lion's share of purchases were in Finnish-owned online stores.
Sales from foreign sites amounted to 13 percent of total sales.
Most of the euros spent online went to travel, but the amount of people buying foodstuffs online has increased significantly.
However, one of the traditional money makers on the Internet market, gambling, saw a decline in sales in Finland this year.
The overall trend last year was that trade over the Internet grew, but goods and services varied in comparison with the previous year.

Grin of the WeekWhat if?
Henry Kissinger once asked Chou En-Lai to theorize on what might have happened if Nikita Khrushchev had been assassinated instead of John F. Kennedy.
After a moment's thought, Chou En-Lai answered:
"I don't believe Mr. Onassis would have married Mrs. Khrushchev."
Thanks to JIP, one of my readers in Finland for this contribution. Having tried to find unique (and good, I hope) jokes every week for 13 years my stock is running our, so contriutions are welcome. But keep them clean...

If you have any comments, rumors, gossip or inside information, send it to: fccj@gol.com

ABOUT THIS BULLETIN
This bulletin is
published by the Finnish Chamber of Commerce in Japan (FCCJ) and
distributed to over 650 recipients among its members and related
organizations. FCCJ was established in April 1999 to promote trade and
economic exchange between Japan and Finland and has today 62 corporate
members, 16 individual and one special member.